Quinn becomes QB No. 26 in the post-Dawson era

Step right up, Brady Quinn. You are the latest contestant in what is one of the NFL's longest running game shows.

Over the past 47 years, many men have been where Quinn now stands, certain in their belief that their time for glory had come.

Don't tell Chiefs fans having a premier quarterback isn't one of the keys to postseason success.

The last time the Chiefs won a championship was Super Bowl IV, when Hall of Famer Len Dawson was their QB. That was in January 1970. The last time they played for a chance to get back to the league title game was when Hall of Famer Joe Montana was their quarterback and led them to the AFC Championship Game. That was in January 1994.

The rest, as they say, is history, most of it very bad history for the Chiefs.

"I can't explain it," said Dawson, who watches every game as the long-standing color commentator on the team's radio broadcasts. "They've had some bad luck, guessed wrong a few times, and some didn't live up to their billing. It's a tough deal."

Matt Cassel is the latest casualty of the efforts to replace Dawson. After spending three seasons and six games as the team's designated starter, Cassel was benched coming out of the bye week in favor of Quinn, who will make his second start this weekend against the Oakland Raiders.

Quinn's first start since December 2009 came in the Chiefs' game before the bye week, when they were hammered by Tampa Bay 38-10. Cassel was out after sustaining a concussion, and with Quinn at the helm, the offense couldn't score a touchdown. It was not Quinn's performance that convinced Crennel to make a permanent switch at the position.

Going 1-5 to open the season required a football sacrifice. When it became apparent that owner Clark Hunt wasn't going to fire general manager Scott Pioli and that Pioli wasn't going to fire Crennel and that the head coach wasn't going to shake up his staff, the axe landed on the quarterback. Cassel has played poorly this season, and with a 19-25 record as the Chiefs' starter, he was moved out.

So here comes Quinn, now 3-10 as an NFL starting quarterback. Aside from this month's loss to the Buccaneers, the rest of those starts came during his time with the Cleveland Browns.

It may be a stretch, but there are some similarities to where Quinn is at this point in his career and where Dawson was when he became the franchise's starting quarterback. Both were first-round selections out of colleges in Indiana (Dawson in 1957 from Purdue; Quinn in 2007 from Notre Dame). Both were born and bred in the charged atmosphere of Ohio high school football (Dawson in Alliance; Quinn in suburban Columbus.)

Both spent the start of their careers trying to get the opportunity to play. In five seasons (1957-61) with Pittsburgh and Cleveland, Dawson played in 28 games but made only two starts (one with the Steelers, one with the Browns). In those limited opportunities, he completed 21 of 45 passes for 204 yards, two touchdowns and five interceptions.

Quinn had more opportunities in his first five seasons, including nine starts in 2009. However, he played in only 15 games, making 12 starts, over that five-year span. Before his start against Tampa Bay, Quinn had completed 184 of 353 passes for 1,902 yards, 10 touchdown passes and nine interceptions.

Among those quarterbacks, only Montana won a game in the playoffs while starting for the Chiefs.

SERIES HISTORY: 104th regular-season meeting. Chiefs lead series, 53-48-2. The two original American Football League franchises split their games last season, the Chiefs winning 28-0 in Oakland and the Raiders taking the game in Kansas City 16-13 in overtime.

-----------------------------------------------

NFL Team Report - Kansas City Chiefs - NOTES, QUOTES

--The Raiders have won five consecutive games at Arrowhead Stadium and with another victory would match the longest visitor winning streak in Kansas City history. The Steelers won six consecutive games played in Arrowhead against the Chiefs (1974, 1976, 1979, 1985, 1987 and 1992.) Along with the Raiders' five straight K.C. victories, Indianapolis won five straight as well (1995, 1996, 2000, 2001 and 2003).